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EADS will consider tanker bid, wants 90-day deadline push

Following the Pentagon’s indication Thursday that it might extend the Air Force aerial refueling tanker bid deadline to allow EADS time to put together a proposal, EADS Friday said it would consider re-entering the competition.

“EADS is assessing this new situation to determine if the company can feasibly submit a responsive proposal to the Department’s request for proposal,” EADS said. “An important prerequisite for our consideration of entry into this competition will be a significant extension to the period within which to prepare and submit a proposal.”

Defense Department officials have repeatedly said they prefer a competition to a sole-source contract and said on Thursday that they would consider a “reasonable” extension of the bid deadline.

On Friday, Pentagon spokeswoman Cheryl Irwin said:

DoD has received notification from EADS North America indicating possible interest in competing for the Air Force’s KC-X tanker.

The Department remains committed to a fair and open competition and welcomes proposals from all qualified offerors.

EADS has asked that we give consideration to extending the proposal due date. We are considering that request.

They have asked for 90 days.

EADS was teamed with Northrop Grumman, which announced earlier this month that it would not bid on the tanker because it saw the request as favoring Boeing’s smaller 767-based tanker over its Airbus A330-based entry.

Those concerns remain, EADS said.

“(W)hile this development is a positive sign that the DoD seeks competition, it does not address EADS’ underlying concerns that the RFP clearly favors a smaller, less capable aircraft, and that the additional combat capability offered by our system may not be fully valued,” it said. “In the end, the company will only submit a proposal if there is a fair chance to win, after evaluating all relevant factors.”

Boeing tanker spokesman Bill Barskdale said Friday: “Boeing is 100 percent focused on submitting a fully responsive, transparent and competitive tanker proposal to the Air Force. Boeing recognizes it must earn the tanker contract by providing the Air Force with a modern and capable tanker that meets or exceeds all warfighter requirements and is cost-effective to buy, own and operate.”

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire — along with the governors of Oregon, Connecticut, Kansas and Illinois — sent Defense Secretary Robert Gates a letter Friday saying a delay would add cost to taxpayers and risk to troops.

“There certainly has been time for all vendors to plan for any number of scenarios,” they wrote. “Delaying the process because a potential bidder cannot assemble a responsive bid in a timely manner amounts to favoring that vendor.”

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., responded with a statement saying:

I am very disappointed that the Department of Defense is even considering giving in to Airbus and extending the hard deadline for tanker bids. I believe in a fair and open competition but this is no time to put American service members and workers on hold while a foreign company waffles. The Air Force laid out clear requirements and timelines and Boeing and America’s workers are ready to work to meet them. Holding the door open to an illegally-subsidized foreign company is the wrong move for our men and women in uniform, workers, and economy.

Unfortunately, this is typical of Airbus who has continually worked to extend deadlines and change the rules in the middle of the game. The Pentagon has gone through a fair and open process in putting out the RFP and requesting bids. They shouldn’t cave to more games from a foreign competitor.

All competitors will have to compete against the clear requirements the Pentagon has set out. Boeing is committed to delivering on those requirements at a price that’s fair to taxpayers. Airbus has continually threatened to pull out if the requirements aren’t changed in their favor. It’s time to stop bending over backwards to meet Airbus’s demands and to move forward with providing America’s military with an American-made tanker.

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